


Maddie Vs. The Mall

by Pennyplainknits



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Community: cliche_bingo, Established Relationship, Kid Fic, M/M, Shoes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-01-17
Updated: 2010-01-17
Packaged: 2017-10-06 09:26:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/52153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pennyplainknits/pseuds/Pennyplainknits
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jeannie ropes Rodney in to help buy Madison some new shoes.  Written for the Journeys and Quests square of my cliche bingo card</p>
            </blockquote>





	Maddie Vs. The Mall

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer** Stargate:Atlantis owned by MGM. This is a work of derivative fiction and in infringement is intended

"Come on Mer," Jeannie said exasperatedly, "it's only for a few hours. She's your only niece!"

"Why can't you just buy them online like I do?" Rodney asked desperately. On the floor, Maddie made whooshing noises as Barbie fought Darth Vader.

"Because she's _six_," Jeannie said. "You need to get them properly fitted or her feet could get damaged. Just do me a favour, OK? Kaleb was all set to take her, but then his Gran had that fall."

"What about you?" Rodney asked, but he was fighting a losing battle. Jeannie had that same determined expression she'd had when Franky Jones had tried to tell him that girls didn't do math.

"It's future scientist's day at work. We've got tours of the labs for school children all day."

"Fine," Rodney huffed, "but I'd better get some serious big brother points for this."

***

"Now listen," Rodney instructed as he unbuckled Maddie's seat belt and helped her jump down out of the car. "You hold onto my had at _all_ times, you understand? If you get lost you-"

"Find someone in uniform and give them one of these," Maddie finished, pulling one of the 'lost child' cards Rodney had printed out last night in a fit of paranoia. They had Maddie's blood group, allergies, and mobile numbers for him, John, Maddie and Kaleb. John had laughed at him, but Rodney had figured better safe than sorry.

"But I'm not going to get lost Uncle Mer," Maddie continued, "I'm not _stupid_."

"I know you're not," Rodney said, gripping her hand tightly all the same. He looked up at the mall and shuddered internally.

"OK kiddo. Let's get this over with."

***

"Shoes," Rodney said to the teenage assistant in the first shop. "She needs them."

"For school or playing?" the girl asked.

"I, I don't-Madison?" Rodney asked, at a loss.

Maddie dug in her Invader Zim backpack and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Mom said you'd forget," she said, holding it out.

Rodney read the instructions in Jeannie's neat handwriting.

_Shoes, or sensible sneakers. She needs them for school. Don't let her talk you into Velcro, she can manage laces just fine._

"For school apparently," Rodney said. Maddie tugged on his hand.

"Uncle Mer, these ones!" she said, pulling him over to a display of dark blue sneakers with rocket ships on the side.

"Sir, those are more _boys_ shoes-" the assistant began.

Rodney glared at him and Maddie did the same, rocket ship sneaker in hand.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't aware we were living in 1952," Rodney began, "Are you saying my niece is _not allowed them because she is a girl_?"

"No, no sir, I, I'll just measure her feet," the assistant babbled, steering them over to the measuring bench. She had Maddie put one foot, then the other, into the measurer, pulling the tapes tight and noting the numbers.

"Hmmmm. We may have a problem," she said.

"Why, what problem?" Rodney said. The only problem he could see was that Maddie had clearly been allowed to dress herself this morning, and was wearing one pink sock, and one lime green and white striped one.

"She's got narrow feet."

"And?" he said, failing to see the problem. Shoes came in different sizes, didn't they?

"I'm afraid her feet are _unusually_ narrow. I can get you some shoes to try, but I don't think they'll really fit."

"It always takes mom and me ages to find shoes," Maddie piped up.

Rodney turned the note over

_She has narrow feet. It may take a while. No making shop assistants cry._

"Great," Rodney said. It was going to be a long day.

It was the same in the second shop, and the third. Despite the fact that Rodney remembered the measurements perfectly, each shop insisted on measuring Maddie's feet, which meant they had to wait and queue with a crowd of harassed-looking parents and rowdy, shrieking children.

"We....might have a pair that would fit," the assistant in the fourth shop said, looking at Maddie like she was a mermaid rather than a perfectly normal little girl.

"Well, can you get them?" Rodney asked, biting his tongue so he wouldn't say anything. He was sick of assistant acting as though Maddie had awkward feet just to make their lives difficult.

The sneakers were bright green, with stars on the sides. Maddie clomped happily around the shop in them, admiring her feet in the mirrors.

"Sorry Maddie," Rodney said regretfully, "but I don't think they count as sensible school shoes."

Her face crumpled and her lower lip wobbled.

"But I like _these_! They have stars!"

"That face didn't work on me when your mom did it either," Rodney said, recognising the signs of a meltdown. "We'll see if they come in any other colours, OK?"

"Sorry, the last black pair were sold this morning," the assistant said regretfully.

"Come on Maddie, take them off," Rodney said.

She huffed and flopped dramatically into the seat, sticking her feet out so Rodney could undo the laces.

***

"Why couldn't I have them?" she asked fretfully as Rodney towed her along behind him on the way to the next shoe shop.

"Your mom said sensible. Bright green is not sensible."

"Uncle John has green ones," Maddie pointed out, hanging back and dragging her feet.

"Uncle John's green ones are running shoes, not school shoes," Rodney replied. It was typical of John- who had totally faked a crisis at work to get out of the shopping trip- to chose the ugliest shoes Rodney had ever seen just because they had a cool name.

"My fee hurt," Maddie complained. "Can we stop? I want to go home."

"We've only been to four shops. Look, I'll make you a deal. If we find you some shoes before three o'clock we can go to Chapters and look at the books," Rodney said, not above bribery.

"Are you going to make the man cry again?" Maddie asked, sounding more interested than disapproving.

"That was an accident!" Rodney protested. "He was just wrong, OK? When you're old enough to start reading comics, don't start with _All Star Batman and Robin_."

"Why?" Maddie chirped, dawdling to look in the window of the build-a-bear shop.

"I'll tell you when you're older," Rodney said, not willing to get into the whole abomination that was Frank Miller.

"Mom says that to me too," Maddie said disconsolately. "Uncle Mer?"

"Yes?" Rodney sighed, thinking this was his punishment for disappearing to America for 10 years and only coming back because John forced him to.

"I need to pee."

***

After the fifth shop, in which the overly-smarmy shop assistant tried to convince Maddie that the black buckle shoes fitted her, only to have her kick her foot and send the shoe flying off the end, narrowly missing Rodney in the process, Maddie sat down in the middle of the food court, crossed her arms and legs, and refused to move.

"No!" she said. "My feet hurt, I'm _tired_, and shoes are stupid! Why can't I just wear my flip flops?"

"Have you ever seen frostbitten toes?" Rodney snapped back, trying to pull her to her feet and failing. Around them, people were starting to stare.

"Come on kiddo," he wheedled. "I know it's no fun, but you need shoes or your mom'll kill me. It's.....it's like an adventure!" he said, grasping at straws, "like a shoe hunt!"

"No it's not!" Maddie said mulishly. Behind them, Rodney heard someone tut.

He turned round to see a woman pushing a stroller.

"I'm sorry, did you just _tut_ at me?" he asked witheringly.

"You shouldn't let her talk to you like that," the woman said. "She needs to know she doesn't call the shots, like my Flora here. You're a good girl, aren't you Flora?" she cooed to the child in the stroller, then turned a simpering, superior look on Rodney and Maddie.

"What she _needs_," Rodney ranted, "is for people to mind their own damn- yes Maddie I know it's a bad word- business! And for stores to realise that children come in different sizes. And I'm sorry that my _highly intelligent_ niece doesn't fit your cookie cutter idea of a 'good girl'," he made the air quotes, "but that in _no way_ gives you the right to judge us!"

He put his hand out to Maddie, who, having her own sense of drama, grasped it and got to her feet.

"Come on Maddie," he said, "let's go." And as one they swept out of the food court, heads held high.

"That lady looked like a puffer fish," Maddie said happily, as the woman spluttered incoherently behind them.

"Yes, well," Rodney said. "She should mind her own business.

"Can we still go to Chapters?" Maddie asked.

"You're determined to see me shout at people aren't you?" Rodney said fondly.

" 'S fun," she replied, smiling up at him.

"I'm a terrible influence," Rodney groaned.

***

"OK, how about those?" Rodney said, without much hope. It was shop number seven (the less said about the sixth shop the better), and he was beginning to believe that Maddie might end up with flip flops after all.

Maddie waggled her feet, looking at the black lace-ups with steel grey laces and, much to her delight, stars embossed on the sole.

"I like 'em," she said, smiling.

"You know the drill," Rodney said, "once around the store."

He watched as she made the circuit.

"Comfy?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Oh thank god," he said, looking around for the assistant.

"We'll take them. Maddie, come put your sneakers back on.

"But I want to keep _these_ on," Maddie whined.

"OK, OK." Rodney passed his hand over his eye. Some battles you just had to pick.

***

"So, did you have fun?" John smirked that night over dinner.

"You are _so_ lucky your nephews live in another country. I'm never doing that again."

"Really?" John said, quirking an eyebrow. "'coz Jeannie rang while you were in the shower. Maddie needs a new winter coat, and she's busy next weekend. What are you doing Saturday?"

Rodney just rested his head on the table, and groaned.


End file.
